Chaos Over the Sword
by Axrat
Summary: Summary inside. Four Swords Adventures Plus Manga fic. Rated PG-13, no higher no lower, so rated T by standards for safety. Dark Link equals Shadow Link, as I think most figured out. Taking place a year after the manga.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: On a normal patrol in the castle hallways, Link is jolted by the return of a ill and injured Shadow. When Shadow warns of a battle raging on in the Dark World that threatans to enter the Light World and destroy the Four Sword, all of Hyrule is put in danger, but when Shadow is descovered, will anyone believe Link?

* * *

Author's notes: Yes, another. I better get all of these onto my USB soon and off Mum's computer. (Looks over shoulder) I looked through the Zelda fics, and found one good FSA Manga fiction. I probably missed some… but oh well, here's mine. Oh, I'll post the next chapter either when I type it or when I get a reveiw. So if you want the chapter soon, reveiw ASAYFR (As Soon As You Finish Reading)

**Chaos Over the Sword**

"Link!" A shout came from down the hall. The green tunic wearing hero looked over his shoulder.

"I'll be right there!" He replied.

_Can't he wait? _He thought.

_You're so stubborn Blue! _He added to himself.

_Guys! Stop fighting! _

_Maybe it wasn't such a good idea, putting the Four Sword back. _

It was a year after Link pulled the Four Sword from his pedistool, split into four and fought Shadow Link, going throught heck. A year after Shadow defeated Gufuu by sacraficing himself. To be exact, it was one year from when Link was patroling, that Shadow broke the mirror.

Link sighed as he came to a corner, and turned back. His patrol in the Castle was done for the day, and night had just arrived with the falling of the sun. He jumped back as a blanket wrapped body fell from the shadows in front of him.

_What that hell? _

_Well, that's certainly wasn't there when I, I mean we, came by last. _

_Maybe it's Shadow! _

_You know he died a year ago, Red. I don't think he'd come back that easily, nor wrapped up. _

Link looked around, not wanting to turn the body in, in case it _was _Shadow. He kneeled down, and started removing the blankets, eyes wide with shock at the bruised and bloodied face.

_WHAT?! That's not right! _

_Red was actually right for once. _

_Yay! _

_I don't think anyone expected that. _

Link gulped, seeing the pale skinned, purple haired, red eyed Shadow. He finished removing the blanket, noticing that Shadow's tunic was torn in places. He looked around.

"Link, hurry up!" The voice rang again.

_Snap! Green, think! _

_I have five seconds, Blue! _

_Guys! Hide Shadow! He's coming! _

_Hurry! _

Link rolled Shadow's body into some shadows, amazed to see it vanish. A guard came storming down the hall, and stopped in front of them.

"What's keeping you?!" The guard hit Link over the back of the head. Link pointed to the blanket.

"I saw that, and was trying to figure out where it came from. It wasn't there last trip through here, and it reeks of evil." Link quickly lied.

_Nice. I could've done better though. _

_Hey, you try coming up with something in a split second! _

_Guys! Stop! _

_Red's right, now's not the time. _

The guard looked at the blanket, picked it up and left. Link exhaled sharply, then glanced at where he hid Shadow.

_What will we do about him? He doesn't exactly have a good reputation here. _

_There's always our room. Who looks in there anymore? _

_No one! _

_Our father, remember? Besides, if we don't report back, __we'll__ be dead instead. _

_Vio's got a point, unfortunately. _

_Ya… _

_Vio's smart! _

_Red, stop, please. I don't mind your praise, but not now, please. _

Link dashed down the hall, eventually coming to the decision that he'd report, then dart back here, get Shadow, and rush to his room to hide him. He came to the throne room, where Zelda was sitting, as normal. Her blonde hair in it's normal style (which Zelda wasn't a big fan of) and her blue eyes gleaming. On either side on her was a guard, who had been specially trained, each in silver armour. Link went down to one knee, bowing his head. He tapped five times on the floor slowly. The guards reached for their spears, but Zelda stopped them.

"The fifth returns…" She muttered under her breath. The tapping was a signal they had agreed upon after she told Link of her chat with Shadow on top of the tower which had resulted in his switching of sides. Wondering if Shadow would ever return, (despite Vio's argument saying it wasn't logical for Shadow to return) they decided that whoever found Shadow would tap five times, once for each Link they knew was alive, while in the other's presence. "Dismissed for the day. Go." She motioned to the hallway he came from, and he rose, bowed and rushed back to where he hid Shadow. He searched the shadows for his evil version. He found Shadow and picked him up, staying in the less used hallways towards his room, knowing most people who used these halls were mostly in bed, or past this part of the castle. He opened the door to his room, and looked around, finding it void of anyone inside, he rushed in and locked the door behind him.

Inside his room was themed with green, blue, red, purple, and black. If you couldn't guess, he decorated it himself. It was low-lit, as he preferred it. Brighter lights for some reason interfered with his ability to talk to all sides of himself. He laid Shadow on his bed, which had an oak frame and the mattress covered with a green blanket.

"I was wondering how long it'd take you." Link cringed at the voice.

_Dude! How'd we miss him? _

_I dunno! He wasn't there when we looked around! And we locked the door. _

_Maybe he's… _A pause and a gasp. _A ghost! _

_Red, I highly doubt that. _

"Wh-wh-where'd you come from?" Link stuttered, turning to face none other then his father.

"I hid behind the door while you looked around, that way you wouldn't see me." Link's father simply stated. "Why's he here?" He motioned to Shadow.

…_We're dead. _

_Zelda never told him… _

_Why didn't we? _

_Um… because he would never believe that the person who faked to be us, and destroyed half the castle would've killed the wind sorcerer. _

"Uh… um… I… um…" Link stuttered in shock. A slam on the brick wall got their attention, and they both looked over to the window, seeing a very weak Shadow collapsed on the ground, breathing coming in short gasps.

_Forget Father! Go help Shadow! _

…_We do that, we're grounded. _

_But Shadow's hurt! _

_Ya, Red's got a point. Who cares when a fifth of you is lying on the ground, weak and about to die? _

…_um, we already though he was dead, genius. _

_Blue, Vio's got a valid point. _

_Green, Blue, stop fighting! That's all you ever do! _

_Guys, Red's right, again. _

Link ignored his father, and dashed to Shadow's side. He heard a lock flipping, and the door opening before closing again.

"Shadow, say something!" Link rolled Shadow onto his back. The Shadow Link's eyes were jammed shut in pain, and his pale face was paler then normal. Link picked Shadow up and put him back on his bed.

"G… Green?" Shadow managed to get out.

_He didn't think we'd put the sword back?! Sheesh! _

_Blue, give him a brake. I'm sure he can't think straight right now. _

_He's hurt guys, answer him and help him! _

_Look at him, he's injured and has some sort of illness. Plus our father knows he's here, so we'll have to make sure we get patrols near our room, and keep the door locked! _

"Partly." Link replied. "We put the Four Swords back after you defeated Gufuu, so we're one person again."

"Ah…" Shadow nodded weakly, eyes barely open.

"Zelda knows your back, so no one should get into our room. Although Father managed to hide and wait…" Link's voice trailed off.

"I noticed." Shadow closed his eyes. Link got up and locked the door again, before starting to pace.

"I'd fetch a doctor, but even after all this time people are still talking about 'the kid who dared disguise himself as Link and destroyed half the castle, landing the blame on Hero Link.'" Link told Shadow after awhile, voice remorseful.

"How long's it been?" Shadow asked suddenly. "Time doesn't pass in the Dark World." He added.

"A year." Link replied, stopping.

_So, how are we going to keep him alive? _

_Any way we can. He's one of us, and we can't let him die. _

_But how? _

_We'll ask Zelda. She'll have better ideas then any of us. _

The doorknob rattled, and then someone knocked. Shadow looked at Link, who gulped.

"Link, it's me. Let me in." Zelda's voice rang. Shadow and Link both exhaled.

_Vio, are you physic? _

_Ya… that was a little weird. _

_Vio's a physic?! Awesome! _

_No… I just have really lucky timing. _

Link walked over and unlocked the door, opening it and letting the Hylian princess in and a stream of bright light. He shut the door again and locked it.

"Sorry about the lock, but I have no choice. Father's already seen Shadow." Link apologized.

"I know." Zelda replied. "He came straight to me and started asking me to talk some sense into you. I'm starting to wish we had told him about how Shadow defeated Gufuu."

"I'm only right here." Shadow commented dully. Zelda alarmedly looked over to Link's bed, spotting the weak and injured Shadow.

"He woke while I was trying to avoid Father's questions." Link explained. Zelda nodded before walking over to Shadow. She placed a hand on his forehead, causing him to flinch at her touch. Zelda bit her lip, and Link waited for her to speak. She pulled her hand away, and walked over to Link, grabbing his sleeve and pulling him to the side.

"He's got a bad fever, and some of his wounds won't heal for a month or more, and without a doctor his condition might worsen… he's already lucky to have survived. Whatever happened to him wasn't in the least amount pleasant." She told Link quietly. He looked away sadly. Zelda paused, then nodded. _Red's got more influence on him then what shows… Hm, at first I wonder if Link was childish and emotional enough for Red to have existed… alone he's completely different. It's amazing to see what a person's like one on one and compare it to when you're talking to them in public. _She thought, before heading back over to Shadow. "My words sunk in, then, I take it?" She commented. Shadow nodded weakly. Everyone was jolted when the doorknob rattled again, and Link's father's voice rang.

"Link, let me in or we'll bust the door down!" Link gulped, then looked to wide-eyed paled faced Zelda. "I'll give you five seconds… five… four… three… two…"

_SNAP! _

_We're dead._

_No! _

_Not good. _

"One."

* * *

Alright. Thank's for reading and I'll post the next chapter soon. Rate and Reveiw. Either or, preferably both.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's notes: This got a favourite already, so I got really motivated and started typing. Here's the chapter.

**Chaos Over the Sword**

"Zero." The door bust open and several, about nine, guards rushed into the room; six with swords, three with spears. One with a sword forced Link into a corner, two with a spear and one with a sword rushed over to Zelda and stood around her protectively, the other five all pointed their weapons at Shadow, while Link's father was last to enter, shooting a glare at Link. "I want you to explain." Link growled, emotions mixed with Blue's and Green's.

"He's the one who killed Gufuu!" Link blurted. Zelda gave him a warning glare, and he retreated back to the corner. His father rolled his eyes, and then looked to Shadow.

"He looks more like the kid who destroyed half the castle." He commented. Zelda stopped her foot.

"So punish me and Link by holding us prisoner?! I demand that you call off your guards! Can't you see that the kid's injured and ill?!" She snapped.

_Wow… I guess being the childhood friend of the princess comes in handy._

_You only just figured that out? _

_Guys, not now! _

_Think straight! Zelda won't let him harm Shadow, and he can't do anything Zelda tells him not to without being either executed- _

_Why would we want that? _

_What Blue said. _

_Ya, we can't have our father killed! _

_Or, as I was saying before I was cut off, punished, maybe losing his job. _

Silence followed, Zelda glaring at Link's father, while he looked back in half-shock.

"B-but Princess-"

"No buts! He's ill and badly wounded, you blind idiot!" Link stiffed some laughter at Zelda's comment, and Shadow seemed to be on the verge of bursting out in laughter like he had while Green and Vio were fighting in the Fire Temple, the only think stopping him was, by the looks of it, his injuries. "You know very well the authority I have over you, or any of your guards and you know very well the consequences of not obeying. Now, guards," She paused. "Dismissed." No one moved. "Ahem?!" All the guards but Link's father left hurriedly. Zelda shot a glare at the Captain of the Guard, who bowed and left muttering 'as you wish'. He looked at the door, which was amazingly still on its hinges. He slammed it shut behind him, and Link went to lock it, before noticing…

_Oh, that's just nice! _

_Shut up! _

_Why'd he have to do that? _

_To break the lock, as he did. _

The lock was busted. Link kicked a chair, which was placed near a mahogany desk. It fell onto the ground with a thud, then Link got a grin on his face as he started to walk away.

_Oh, I know that grin. _

_Take over, Vio. _

_Go Vio! _

_Heh, alrighty then. Why not? _

_No book reading! _

_Ya, I agree really. _

_Huh? _

_I wasn't planning on it. _

Link picked the chair and walked over to the door, placing it so it was on its back legs and the top of it under the golden doorknob. He then grabbed some black string, which he was still trying to figure out how it got in his room, and tied the top of the chair to the doorknob.

"…Alright, you're smart." Zelda commented. "You win." Link got a big grin on his face.

"Alright," Shadow was sitting up now, apparently painfully as he flinched every time he moved. "Now what? It'll take awhile before I can even leave this room, and I doubt that'll happen with your father outside." Link looked to Zelda.

"We've figured that part out, sort of. He won't be near." He looked back to Shadow. "You see, Zelda has control of the patrols in the castle. We've agreed that I'll have the small area in sight of my room, so I can make sure nothing happens to you, and my father will have the ones outside, nowhere near the window."

"You guys planned this out…" Shadow commented.

"What else do you have to do when you're not around?" Zelda joked. "Besides, I knew that you couldn't die, as you're a citizen of the Dark World, so you dieing seemed a bit… far-fetched." She grinned. "Vio didn't agree, though."

_Ha! In your face! _

_Haha! _

_Zelda's smart! _

…_HECK NO I DIDN'T! _

Link's eyes were distant in shock, and Shadow raised an eyebrow at him.

"Um… Link?" Zelda waved a hand in front of his face. Link shook his head with a grin. Zelda understood and shook her head, before heading over to Shadow. "Vio's not acting like Vio." She whispered. It only took Shadow a few seconds to understand, when he started nodding with a grin.

"Quadruple faced, are we?" He looked at Link, who nodded.

"Ya… so? You would be too." Link retorted. Shadow smiled and nodded.

"So I would." He nodded.

"So, what was it like in the Dark World, anyways?" Link pulled up two spare chairs which were sitting against the wall, sitting each beside Shadow and beckoning for Zelda to sit in the second on while he sat in the first. Shadow looked up.

"Dark… evil… it depends on who's got command of you, and how long you've been there." Shadow started. "I'm starting to wish it never cleared up… when I first returned to the Dark World it was dark, you could only walk aimlessly. No noise could be heard, so yelling out yielded no reason. It was our home, the Shadow Hylians… we've always been called 'Shadow Scum' by many of our 'higher ups' or even some Hylians… how it leaked out… I have yet to discover. But it started clearing up apparently a few months ago.'

"I was approached by a Shadow Hylian with purple hair, like my own. He showed me around the place when it cleared for me. After awhile I discovered that they wanted to try to get me to return to the Light World and resume my duties to kill you, Link." He paused. "I then tried to rebel against it, when many Shadow Hylians, more then I thought existed, attacked me. I fled and it darkened up again. That's the last thing I remember… then I woke up here with you stuttering." Shadow grinned and Link let out a few laughs. Shadow then went on describing what Shadow Hylians were, and from what all sides of Link could make out, Shadow wasn't too different from the average Shadow Hylian, besides the fact that he switched sides, although he did mention that of late it was becoming more common.

Shadow looked over at Zelda, who had just fallen out of her chair, fast asleep.

"If I were anyone else, I'd take that as an insult." Shadow commented as Link got up and picked up the sleeping princess. Link walked over to the door and undid his makeshift lock, then left, nodding to Shadow. He closed the door behind him, and walked around the corner, which was as far as he needed to go to find one of the maids, handing Zelda off to her. He paused, before rushing back to his room. He opened the door, and walked in; making sure that no one near by would be able to see Shadow. Closing the door, he redid the lock, and put the chairs back against the wall.

"No one saw you, did they?" Link looked over to Shadow, who shook his head. "Good." Link went through some things in his room, before pulling out some blankets. He laid the different coloured fabrics (which matched the colour theme of the room, green, blue, red, purple and black) on the floor, and sat down on them. "Get some sleep, you need it."

"Sorry about this, Link." Shadow apologized to Link for the first time. "Dropping in on you like this."

"You had little say in the matter, Shadow." Link laughed. "Don't worry, no one else may know about what you did, but by sacrificing yourself you allowed all four inside of me to survive, and you're one of us, Shadow."

"Hm… Green Link, Blue Link, Red Link, Violet Link, Shadow Link. Two names really don't fit." Shadow grinned. "And one of them sounds girly." He added.

"You haven't changed." Link shook his head.

_Haha! It falls on Vio again! _

_Ha… first Zelda, now Shadow! _

_Aw… give him a break! _

_Geeze… way to state the obvious Shadow… why do you think my name's Vio, not Violet? _

"Nah…" Shadow yawned. "Maybe not. Well, I don't know about you, but I'm bushed."

"Don't know why." Link teased before lying down. "See you in the morning." Link eventually drifted slowly off to sleep.

* * *

Shadow opened his eyes about an hour after Link fell asleep, forcing himself to his feet and over to the window.

"I can't have my past mistakes get Link punished." He opened the window and waited for a few seconds, before jumping.

* * *

Link awoke to a cold breeze sweeping through the room. He got up and deftly closed the window, before turning back, glancing at his bed. His eyes widened, and he darted at the door, quickly undoing the 'lock' and throwing the door open, rushing through the halls.

"Zelda! Zelda! Zelda!" He kept shouting until he came to her door, which was at the top of a winding staircase. He knocked on the door, harder then he wanted to.

"Link? Come in." To his surprise Zelda replied. He accidentally threw the door open, and panting he said

"Zelda… Shadow…" He paused, catching his breath before exclaiming, "Shadow's gone!"

Zelda waisted no time in getting up, her blue nightgown falling to the floor.

"Meet me in the throne room." She said simply. Link nodded and left, closing the door behind him. He rushed down the stairs, and through the halls. He paused only to catch his breath and wait for Zelda at the doors to the throne room. Zelda joined him a few moments later, a brownish hooded cloak wrapped around her, the hood over her head.

"Let's go." Link nodded in agreement, and they started to dart into the throne room, until a bright light engulfed them, and a fifth voice, besides the four sides of himself, rang in Link's head:

The four together will find the fifth faster… hurry, his time may be short. 

What was that?! 

I dunno… 

Maybe it's Shadow

Red, that was a girl's voice. 

The two appeared in the Four Sword's Sanctuary, to Zelda's bewilderment. (Ya, I know big words! (head explodes) ow…) Link slowly approached the Four Sword, placing a hand on the hilt. He gulped, remembering that last time Gufuu was released. He glanced back at Zelda, who nodded.

"Gufuu shall not be released. He no longer exists without the magic of the Dark Mirror." She told him.

"Well then, why not?" Link smirked, before pulling up on the Four Sword, and a bright light engulfed the room as the sword came free.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's notes: Yes, another

**Chaos Over the Sword**

Link opened his eyes when the light faded, feeling light headed. He looked around, and blinked a few times before remembering what he just did. He was no longer Link, but he had once again split into four, Green, Blue, Red and Vio. Red hugged Blue just to make sure that the four of them just did what he thought they did.

"HEY!" Blue pulled out his hammer, and needless to say, he smacked Red on the head

"Ouches! That hurt…" Red whimpered, rubbing where Blue hit him in pain.

"Blue, give it a rest." Green growled.

"Guys, remember, we're trying to save Shadow?" Vio reminded them. The others nodded before looking to Zelda. The five of them then vanished in a bright flash of light, reappearing outside of town.

"Convenient!" Blue commented. Green nodded.

"Too convenient…" Vio muttered.

"Alright, we'll split up." Green decided. "Red, Zelda, you two go together, and head east." he ignored Blue's glares. "Vio, you go west, Blue, go south. I'll stay in this area. He couldn't be far." The others nodded, and all headed off in the direction Green told them to.

Red and Zelda found a river, and started searching along its banks for any sign of Shadow, any at all. Zelda thought she spotted something in the distance, but by the time her and Red could search where she saw it, it was gone.

Blue spotted a flash of red in the distance, and rolled his eyes, guessing that Red was messing with his Fire Rod, forgetting that Red and Zelda went east, while the red flash came from the west…

Green searched along the town walls and around town, asking anyone on the streets if they saw anything strange… such as 'the kid who nearly destroyed half the castle' only getting weird looks in response. He sighed at his unsuccessfulness.

Vio walked slowly south-west, spotting to figures in the distance and a red flash. He started approaching the figures, when one vanished. He got closer, spotting two, glowing, red eyes. _Shadow!? _His pace quickened, and when it was apparent that it was his evil counterpart, he raised his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle, before rushing over to the weak and confused Shadow.

"Shadow!" He exclaimed, sliding to his knees and coming to a stop beside Shadow. "You okay?"

"Link?" Shadow looked over.

"Vio, actually. When we get back to the castle we'll explain." Shadow nodded, when four figures, three from the east, one from the north-east, ran towards them, eventually becoming Green, Blue, Red and Zelda. Vio put Shadow's arm over his shoulder and helped him to his feet, while Green rushed over and did the same on Shadow's other side. The group slowly started back towards town, assisting Shadow where they could.

"I wonder how Father will react to this." Green laughed.

"Ya…" Vio grinned. "'Waking' the princess in the middle of the night to find the maniac who destroyed half the castle, he won't take that easily."

"I was already awake." Zelda grinned. Shadow looked over at her.

"I didn't realise you were there under the cloak." He commented with a laugh. Zelda shrugged in reply.

They continued on in silence, Vio glaring at Green for not noticing that Shadow wasn't using his left leg, and was wincing every time he took a step.

"Let's stop." Shadow nearly caused Green and Vio to fall, as he stopped moving. "I'm exhausted, and my leg's killing me." Green and Vio nodded, sitting Shadow down on a rock. Zelda pushed past them and over to Shadow, kneeling down by his left leg, which was extended out in front of him. He hissed as she touched it, but she didn't respond. She pulled up the leg of his leggings, and whistled before she backed up and glared at him.

"Why'd you jump from the window?"

"Huh wha?" Shadow did a double take at Zelda's question.

"You're leg wasn't banged up like that before, Shadow. I'm not stupid." She hissed. He looked away silently. "You'll be explaining later." She motioned for the other four Links to walk out of earshot. "I doubt we'll be able to get him back to the castle. I fear we may have no choice but to get him a doctor now… his leg is banged up badly… maybe fractured… I don't know. To say the least, he won't be on his feet for awhile."

"Alright, who's carrying him?" Blue glared.

"We're staying here… then?" Green ignored Blue and looked at Zelda, who nodded. "You can go back to the castle, if you want. We can stay here."

"No." She shook her head. "I'm staying. Besides, last I checked, none of you knew anything about healing besides that if they're bruised or cut, they're injured." She grinned, before looking over at Shadow, her grin vanishing. "We'll have to stay here for the night. By morning my absence will be noticed, we'll be found shortly after." She looked back in time to see the Links nod. They then walked back over to Shadow.

"We have no choice. We're staying here tonight." Vio told him. Shadow nodded in understanding. He slipped off the rock slowly and leaned against it.

"Sorry about this. I'm only making things worse." Shadow looked away. Vio shrugged.

"It's a nice change to the normal routine." He commented with a smile. Shadow nodded slowly, before glancing over at the now sleeping Red, before yawning. "I can take a hint." Vio lay back, listening to Blue and Green arguing over whom was the better fighting. _I'm better then both… as last time they fought, Green practically murdered Blue. _Vio got a grin on his face, remembering when he and Green fought, while Shadow's sides practically split from laughing so hard, Red was crying, and Blue... was basically burying Red while shouting at Green.

Everyone eventually fell asleep, looking up at the near full moon.

--

Vio was the first to awake, stirring and looking up at a bunch of guards surrounding them. He spotted Shadow in the middle of the group, held up harshly by the forearm. Shadow was keeping his left leg off the ground, basically hanging by the arm, a look of pain on his face. Vio slowly crawled over to Zelda and gently shook her shoulder.

"Zelda… wake up." He whispered. She stirred with an 'hm?' before sitting up and noticing the guards. She scowled and jumped to her feet, glaring at the guards.

"Release him!" She commanded, waking Green, Blue and Red who all jumped to their feet. When the guards didn't respond, Zelda's face stiffened. "I said, release him, now!" One guard laughed.

"As you wish," the one holding onto Shadow's arm grinned, and he tossed Shadow through the group of guards, and the Shadow Hylian skidded to a stop in front of Zelda with a moan.

"I'll be back." She whispered to him, before walking to the guards. "What has gotten into you?!" She paced in front of them. "Do you not fear execution? Exile?" She stopped. "Being considered a disgrace by your fellow Hylians?" No one answered. She scowled. "Return to the castle! Your fates will be decided later." She turned and helped the Links get Shadow to his feet, as the guards rushed away, spotting Green and Blue going for their swords. "You okay?"

"Oh, ya. I'm fine. I just got thrown across the ground and skidded to a stop; while my leg's already so banged up I can't use it." He replied, voice and expression dripping with sarcasm.

"Let's get him back to town." Vio said, while supporting Shadow's left side. Red took his other side, since Green thought someone else besides him should do it, and Blue wasn't exactly jumping to help. They started at a painfully slow pace towards town, every minute felt like an hour, and Red tripped a few times, until it was decided that he was too tired to support Shadow anymore. Everyone looked to Blue, since Red was too tired and Green still refusing.

"I'm not going to help! I, unlike you guys, still have pride!"

"Blue, I've been supporting Shadow since we started and I'm still going." Vio glared.

"That's your choice!"

"FINE! I'll do it." Zelda lowered the hood on her cloak. "If no one else will." She walked over to Shadow and put his arm around her shoulders. Shadow smiled his thanks, before they continued on, at a somewhat faster pace then when Red was helping.

Eventually, they made it back to town, where the guards at the gates rushed over to help, and assisted the six back to the castle, where Zelda was taken back to her room, and the Links rushed Shadow into their room, lying him back down onto the bed.

"Shadow, why'd you jump? You could at least walk yesterday." Green crossed his arms. Shadow looked away.

"Come on Shadow!" Red nudged his shoulder.

"I cannot cause more problems for you just because I showed up." Shadow said without turning to look at them.

"Shadow! You're one of us! We can't abandon you!" Green exclaimed.

"Come on Shadow, we'll get through this." Red encouraged. Shadow glanced over at the Links.

"Thanks, guys." He turned away again.

"Guys…" Vio was flipping through some notes. "Who's going on patrol in five?"

"Uh…" The others, besides Shadow, all looked at each other.

"Scissors paper rock?" Red suggested.

"Where is it?" Green asked.

"Just in these hallways." Vio replied.

"We can take turns then." Red grinned.

"Someone would notice the change in tunic colour." Vio told him. "It's not for long, though… only until lunch."

"I'm sure word got around about the Four Sword again." Green commented. "If so, all four of us will be expected at lunch…"

"What about Zel?" Red looked up. "Plus, if word hasn't gotten around, it would have to be Green on watch."

"So…" Vio got up. "It'll have to be Green. We need to keep this as hushed as possible."

"Who knows who else has seen Shadow…" Blue commented.

"I'm only right here!" Shadow reminded him.

"Sorry!" Blue retorted.

"Guys, stop. I'll go on watch." Green said before leaving, stopping at the door. "And make sure Shadow doesn't do anything stupid again." With that, he left.

"You'd think he didn't trust me." Shadow commented, now lying on his back and looking at the ceiling.

"And you don't know why?" Blue glared, a look which Shadow returned.

"Guys, calm down." Vio snapped, before Blue shot back with some insult, which Vio returned. Then started the insult duel.

"Guys! Stop fi-i-i-ighting!" Red cried, while Shadow blinked at Vio's… uncalmness.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's notes: Let's just say that this was a keyboardful. Alright?

**Chaos Over the Sword**

It went on like that for awhile, and eventually word got out about the Four Links, and after that, Five. There was no point in trying to keep Shadow a secret anymore, and unfortunately for the Links, word seeped out and made it to every corner of Hyrule, making it so that Shadow couldn't be left alone. Normally he was left with Vio, and only once with Red. Needless to say, that didn't turn out well. When the others returned, they found Shadow hiding his head under a pillow while Red rambled on about something while playing some weird game with dice and a board.

Eventually, Shadow healed to the point where (with Vio's help) he could _limp _around. That's when he decided to tell them the real reason he tried to bail. They were sitting in the castle gardens in a squrcle (cross between a square and a circle), talking about various subjects, mainly filling Shadow in on what had been happening lately.

"Hey... guys..." Shadow looked up. "There's more to this then what meets the eye. I didn't just _fall _from the shadows... I was attacked and questioned about the swords you guys wield... _The Four Swords._" He looked up. "Not only am I hunted, but the Shadow Hylians are planning to destroy every Four Sword." He shook his head. "No one knows where they are... nor who their leader is..."

"NOW YOU DECIDE TO TELL US?!" Blue shot up.

"BLUE!" Vio and Green shouted at him as Shadow looked away sorrily.

"We're all in trouble. If I leave... you guys might have a chance." Shadow looked up.

"Not a chance!" Blue sat back down. "I'm not letting a fifth of Link die! Not after all the trouble we've gone through for you." He grinned cockily.

"LINKS!" A guard rushed over from the hall way. "Were you guys coming to training today? The other guards are slacking lately. I think they need some encouragement... or something."

"Of course!" Red grinned. Green and Blue nodded. Vio shrugged.

"I'll tag along, if you wouldn't mind." Shadow got to his feet and leaned against a nearby tree.

"Of course!" Green nodded. The other four Links (Green, Blue, Red, Vio) got up and Vio went over to Shadow, who gripped onto his shoulder, and they started off after the guard, who just left ahead of them, at a pace that Shadow could keep up with.

Once they arrived at the training area, Vio and Shadow had to sneak off in order to avoid the crowd wanting to talk to the Links. Vio sat Shadow down under a tree, and joined the other three towards the training 'ring' in the centre. Shadow watched as Green and Blue whispered something as Red walked over to him and sat beside him.

"Aren't you going to fight?" Shadow asked him. Red shook his head.

"Nah. I'll fight some other time. Blue and Green are going to see if the two of them can beat Vio." Red replied.

"Haha... I wonder." Shadow decided that this might actually be interesting.

Blue and Green moved to one side of the training 'ring' while Vio moved exactly the opposite way they did. All three turned to face the other side in one, sudden movement. They all drew their swords in the same way, sudden and briskly, unlike the messy, quick movements they had used a year ago. He watched Vio slowly pace back and forth, eyes never straying from Blue and Green, as if reading them. Blue and Green both grinned cockily, making it apparent that they were confident that they would beat Vio with numbers if nothing else. Vio finally stopped back where he started, and turned away, crossing his arms and waiting. Blue and Green grinned, taking their chance. They charged with swords ready. Vio reacted at the very last _millisecond_, turning and blocking with his sword (as none of the Links had sheilds with them at the time), turning it around in a circle, forcing Green and Blue's swords to point down at the ground. He then spun around and hit Blue square in the back with his sword, leaving a gash. Shadow's eyebrows went up in surprise, but guessing it was revenge for Blue's insults on his 'study talk'. Many guards' eyes widened as Blue flinched, giving Vio a chance to put an identical slash on Green's back, who let out a slight hiss, before turning and managing to scrape the skin.

Vio jumped up into the air, then used the hilt of his Four Sword to knock Blue to the ground, by hitting him square on the side of the head. He landed and turned to Green, darting forwards and the two criss-crossing in the same way they had during their fight in the Fire Temple. Shadow's eyes widened at how..._**arrogant**_... Green was. Vio repeated what he had done in that battle, taking the hilt of his sword and hitting Green square in the stomach with it. Green flew backwards, and landed, unconscious, a couple of metres/yards away. Vio sheathed his sword and stood straight, eyes glancing between both Green and Blue. Green was unconscious, while Blue's eyes were slightly opened, and he was breathing heavily. Vio walked over to Blue and offered a hand, but Blue smacked it away like an annoying fly. Vio shrugged and walked over to Shadow and Red, as if nothing happened.

"That was... interesting." Shadow had few words left after watching that. Vio shrugged, before sitting down. Red looked over at Blue, who was attempting to get up.

"Shouldn't we go help him?" He asked.

"He refused help when I offered." Vio crossed his arms.

"What about Green?" Shadow asked.

"He'll get back up in a minute or two. That's what happened last time."

"How would you know?"

"I just do." Vio leaned against the tree. "Is there a problem with that?" Shadow and Red shook their heads quickly. "That's what I thought."

Of course, when Blue and Green _did _get up, they wanted a rematch with Vio, who shrugged and accepted, probably out of boredom. As soon as they were ready and about to begin, the area went darker than pitch black. So much that even Shadow couldn't see any further away then Red, who was directly to his left. He shot to his feet, trying to ignore the pain in his leg. Red was up a second later with the Fire Rod in hand, attempting to light part of the area with the fire, but it was unsuccessful. Red looked around, hearing voices of guards, plus two that rang out clearly.

"VIO! RED! SHADOW!" Blue and Green were fine, at least. Plus, from the sounds of it, the entire Hylian army, which Shadow found strange, as no one with such magic abilities would go unnoticed in the castle... unless...

"Shadow Hylians..." Shadow realised. "More than one... and powerful at that." He added in a mutter. The room suddenly lit up again, causing everyone to moan in surprise at the sudden light. Shadow hissed and covered his eyes for a second, before managing to see his surroundings without little white dots in his vision. But, he noticed, someone was missing. Blue and Green hadn't moved, looking around.

"Where's Vio?" Red piped up.

"Probably lost in the confusion." Shadow took a few steps forward and picked up a piece of parchment with a strange lanague writen on it, one he was _vaguely _familiar with. It was usually used by Shadow Hylians while transfering notes in areas where they're in plain sight. He read it, dropped it, then tossed his sword, ending it up in the wall on the other side of the room, after it zipped past Green and Blue's faces, and barely missed several guards.

"What's wrong Shadow?" Green asked after he and Blue ran over.

"They took him... THEY TOOK VIO!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Chaos Over the Sword**

Shadow was lying on the bed in Link's room, the words of the note a ghost haunting him.

_Hello there, Shadow. Now it's been awhile since we talked, hasn't it? _

He closed his eyes. Vio was the only Link to ever have listened to what he said, his reasoning for things, the only Link who was basically his best friend, and his only real friend in Hyrule. The words he spoke a year ago were proving true... that Vio _was _an exellent friend, and now that he thought about it, his only friend. Sure, Green, Red and Blue were like friends... but him and Vio actually understood each other, as if they were childhood friends.

_Ah... the disadvantages when you have apparently colour blind spies, huh? _

Shadow sat up, looking down as his hands.

_Hm... oh well, just know that I have your friend... and this was meant for you. _

"Why couldn't they take me instead of making Vio suffer for my mistakes? This is why I tried leaving... I've just caused trouble for the Links..." He muttered.

"But you are one of the Links, Shadow." He turned his head to see Zelda standing at the door.

_Meet me in the Forbidden Forest as soon as possible. If you don't well... you may not even get your friend's dead body. _

"I know..." He looked away, then up at the ceiling. "Only because of you."

"You were always one of them, Shadow. I just helped you see that." Zelda walked over to him and sat beside him. "I know, Vio was the first person to listen to you. Out of all of the other Links, he's your best friend." Shadow nodded. "I'm sure he'll be fine. Green, Blue and Red are getting ready to go find him."

"Where are they?" Shadow asked, a look of determination in his eyes as he rose to his feet.

"Just outside town, why?" Zelda asked.

"I'm going." Shadow limped over to the door.

"You sure?" Zelda asked.

"As sure as I'm one of the Links." He replied before leaving. Zelda blinked, before leaving the room as well.

"Alright, we ready?" Green turned back to face Blue and Red, surprised to see Shadow leaning against the town wall.

"You know," Shadow spoke, eyes gleaming with an evil grin on his face. "If you could read Shadow Hylian, you'd know where to look."

"Oh, and like you can read Shadow Hylian?" Blue glared.

"Ahem." Shadow glared back. "What do you think I am?"

"You think you can keep up without slowing us down?" Green asked him. Shadow straightened up in a worm like movement, grinning at Green with an evil gleam in his eyes.

"Think you can keep up with me?" He asked, walking over, still limping slightly, but not as bad as earlier.

"Fine. But, if you can't keep up, we're leaving you behind." Blue glared.

"Fine." Shadow replied, before the group started to walk across Hyrule Field to the forests in the south.

The sun started setting, and Shadow grinned. The dark of night would be just what he needed to get ahead. He didn't want to have to bring the others into this if he could help it.

"Guys, let's stop here for the night, before the stachilds come out." Green said, pointing to a circle of boulders nearby.

"You guys stop," Shadow spoke. "I'll go on ahead."

"You've got to be crazy!" Blue exclaimed.

"Then I am." Shadow said as he continued on. "I'll be at the Forbidden Forests by sunrise, if you want to catch up." He told them as stars dotted the sky and the sun vanished, no moon in the sky. Shadow smiled, the New Moon would allow him to evade Stachilds and any other monsters on the way.

Shadow barely stopped, only resting a couple times, but tried to keep moving to avoid groups of monsters, which he guessed were told to keep an eye out for him. He came to the edge of the trees just as the stars in the east faded away. He paused, hand on a tree and looking into the forest. _It's called the Forbidden Forest for a reason... _He thought, before going in, the limp in his leg now unnoticable.

"I know you're here." He spoke, feeling the familiar pressence of another Shadow Hylian nearby.

"Then come on, Shadow." Replied a man's voice. Shadow walked cooly past a few more trees into a small clearing, Vio tied up to a tree on the other side of the clearing with a gag over his mouth.

"Vio." Shadow approached slowly, and the Purple Link looked up weakly. His eyes flashed red for a moment, before he dropped his head.

"Take him." Shadow turned quickly to face a man appearing to be in his thirties with silver hair and red eyes in dark clothing, his skin paler than Shadow's. "I have no need for him. I must comment, however. You're skin is not as pale as it used to be, Shadow, and your eyes have lost their evil glow." He motioned to a pool of water, and Shadow walked over to it, looking at his reflection. The man was right, his eyes no longer glowed, but were as dull as rocks. His hair was scruffed up, and his skin somewhere inbetween the man's and the colour most Hylians skin was. Shadow turned away and unsheathed his sword, walking over to Vio. He raised it and cut the ropes, and Vio slumped to the ground. Shadow rolled Vio onto his back and pulled the gag off of him.

"You okay?" Shadow asked Vio, who weakly nodded. "The others are comming." He told him, before facing the man leaning against the tree. "You have a grudge against me. You either want me in your power or dead, and I'd rather die than fight for you."

"Fine, then, Shadow. Since you seemed to have figured me out, then I challenge you to a Shadow Hylian's Duel." The man replied.

"I accept." Shadow replied, and a black bladed sword appeared in the man's right hand, and they circled each other, before charging with swords ready. Their blades met in a flash of sparks, but Shadow was pushed to the ground, but he vanished when the man nearly cut his head off. Shadow reappeared in a tree, and jumped at the man, who parried as if Shadow was in slow motion. Shadow swiped at his legs, but he jumped over.

By this point, Red, Blue and Green were at the edge of the forest, looking at each other.

"It's call the Forbidden Forest for a reason." Green commented.

"But we can't leave Shadow alone!" Red exclaimed.

"Let's go, Green. We can't let part of Link die." Blue spoke. Green nodded, and the group started into the forest, before a yell of pain rang out. They all looked at each other in fear, knowing the all to familiar voice.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's notes: Alright, I told someone that it would've been done a week ago but I forgot I was moving... Heh... you think the boxes would've given it away.

**Chaos Over the Sword**

Green, Blue and Red darted towards the voice, coming out a few feet behind where Shadow was crouched, gripping onto his sleeves tightly.

"L...light..." He stuttered, collasping to his hands and knees.

"Shadow!" Vio was now leaning against a tree. "Light only harms you because you're afraid of it. You've been here for how long and it hasn't harmed you!" He shouted to the Fifth Link. Shadow stumbled to his feet, panting a bit. His opponent laughed, shaking his head.

"Shadow, you're still weak... Hm... I remember something a long time ago, last time we fought. You nearly bested me, had a friend of your's not stood up for you, followed by a group of Shadow Hylians forcing you both to flee, you would've killed me then." He spoke.

"Why... if I was winning..." Shadow paused, confused.

"The Shadow Hylians following her weren't happy with you defeating me, so she ran ahead to warn you."

"I don't remember any of this!" Shadow exclaimed shaking his head. "Lies!" He got a laugh in response. Shadow lunged, before rolling to dodge a swipe. His opponent stood in one place, as if able to tell what Shadow was about to do.

"Try to, then."

Shadow rolled again, before bringing his shield, forgotten before now, up to block. He pushed it down, pushing off the ground and kicking the Shadow Hylian in the face, twice, before taking his sword and slashing the man's arm. Shadow landed on his feet a couple metres away, before putting his shield away.

"Hm." Shadow blinked. "I... you... he..." He stuttered.

"I see, you're starting to remember." They circled for awhile. The Links watched in confusion.

"You sold me to Ganon... I remember now..." Shadow darted forwards and spun into a spin attack, catching the Shadow Hylian off-guard. "You thought I wasn't any good to you, not with the others around." He brought it into a downwards slash, which the man rolled to dodge.

"Mhm."

"When we faced off last..." Shadow pointed his sword at his opponent, and it started glowing black with Shadow Magic. "I think I was about to do THIS!" He spun it above his head, before bringing it into another downward slash. A blast of Shadow Magic shot at the Shadow Hylian, who was hit square in the chest and sent flying back into a tree. He vaporized, vanishing. Vio looked away.

"Goodbye, Shadow." He whispered, before turning and walking away.

"Vio!" Shadow started to go after him.

"Let him go." Blue crossed his arms.

"What's up with him, anyway? He's not the same..." Green bit his lips.

"His eyes..." Shadow bit his lip. "They turned red for a moment earlier..."

"Point?" Green asked.

"I don't know... it's just not normal..."

"Let's go find somewhere to set up camp, and worry about it then." Blue turned away and started back in the way they came.

* * *

"Guys, I think we're lost." Red piped up. They'd been walking for at least a couple of hours, but all they saw were trees.

"Thanks for stating the obvious." Shadow glanced around. "I could've sworn I saw that bush _move._"

"I don't see anything." Green crossed his arms.

"Probably just the wind." Shadow turned away.

"What wind? There hasn't been even a breeze since we entered these woods." Blue commented.

"Whatever." Shadow continued on. "We need a way out of here, and fast. These woods aren't known for giving intruders mercy."

"They say only the fairies can navigate the area without getting lost... I wonder if that's really true..." Green glanced around.

"It's true alright!" Piped a girl's voice from a tree. Everyone looked up to see a girl, only three inches tall, with long, black hair wearing loose-fitting black clothing. She had dark, silverish, glowing skin and transparent wings sitting on a tree branch

"A fairy!" Red exclaimed.

"A _black _fairy..." Shadow muttered in awe.

"Uh-huh!" She chirped. "The name's Rain. I know your's, Shadow. You three," She looked at Green, Blue and Red. "Are the Links... but aren't you missing one?"

"Yes, Vio. He walked off on us and now we can't find him." Green nodded. "We were trying to get out of the forest and back to the castle."

_Rain, let's take them to Hyrule Field. They're the chosen ones; It would do no good for them to turn into stachilds. _Everyone looked around in confusion as a deep, male voice rang in their heads. A pure black stallion stepped from the shadows of the tree Rain was in. _I am known as Demon, do not looked confused, I am the horse standing before you. _It's eyes were the same colour as Shadow's, but gleamed like rubies.

"S...Stachilds?" Red asked. "Is that what happens to those who enter the forest?"

_If you're lucky, you'll turn into a skullkid. If you're even luckier, you'll let us get you all out of here. _

"Iasaduk." Shadow bowed.

"What language was that?" Blue asked.

_Ancient Hylian... I am amazed to see that it is still spoken. _Demon commented in awe.

"It's spoken widely by Shadow Hylians, for exactly that reason." Shadow nodded.

_It makes sense. _Nodded the stallion. _Now, let us go before the magic of these woods takes hold of you four. Rain? _

"I'm on it!" Rain flew forwards, sparkling, silver dust falling from her wings as she did so, landing on everyone's head, and leaving a trail of the shining particles on the ground. Red sneezed after inhaling some dust.

"Let's go!" He took off, suddenly energetic. The others started to follow, before a sharp pain ran up Shadow's formerly lip leg. He collapsed to one knee. Red and Rain stopped, turning back. Shadow pulled his legging up to his knee, finding that his shin was purple. Rain hissed, before letting out a whistle.

"Wow... that's a doozy..." Rain flew over to have a look at Shadow's leg. "Want me to heal it for you?"

_Save your energy, Rain. _Demon stopped the fairy. _I'll carry him on my back. Wait until we get out of here. _

"Alright." Rain turned back to Shadow. "What'd ya do? Fall from the highest room in the tallest tower of Hyrule Castle?"

"Nearly." Shadow pulled his legging back down into his boot, as it had been before. Demon walked over to him, and lowered his neck, allowing Shadow to grab onto it and be pulled to his feet. The other three Links there helped Shadow onto Demon's back (which, they found, was difficult due to the horse's lack of saddle). Shadow gripped onto Demon's mane.

_Just, try not to yank my mane out. _Demon glanced up at Shadow.

"Oi, you're the one without reins." Shadow replied with a grin.

_I'm also the one who can leave you here to die. _Shadow shut up after that.

Rain zipped off ahead, followed by Red, who was followed by Blue, who was followed by Green who beside Shadow and Demon.

"So, Shadow, during your duel earlier, you mentioned that you remembered something." Green started. "What was that about?" Shadow sighed, looking down.

"In the Dark World, a few Shadow Hylians got along with me really well. The Shadow Master, the man I was dueling, found that we were a bit of a nuisance while together, so he split us up by selling me off to Ganon." Shadow shrugged. "Apparently I'm only worth a measly ten rupees." Green let out a laugh at that. "Every Hylian has a shadow, some were once Hylian, others were created using Shadow Magic."

"Which are you?" Green asked.

"I... I can't remember that much." Shadow shook his head. "I do remember now, a Shadow Hylian I had 'met' durring the Gufuu incident was actually one of the hand full I got along with..." He shook his head again. "Eh, I'm sure they've all forgotten about me by now."

Green was about to speak again, when they came out into Hyrule Field just as the sun began to rise.

"First stop, Hyrule Feild en-route to Castle Town!" Rain said chipperly.

"LIIIIIINKS!" Everyone looked to a soldier darting up to them. He had blond hair, and blue eyes like the Link's, only looked a couple years older then them. He stopped, leaning on his knees and panting heavily. "Links... thank the Goddesses... I found... you..." He said between breaths. "It's the purple one, he stopped by the castle last night, then just vanished. A little while later, we had a Wolfo, Kazuya by name, attack. He was easily fended off, but it's his words that scared us enough to search for you."

"What were they?" Green asked.

"'I only serve two, My master and his apprentice who was once your's to command. I will return with the might of four hundred forty-four thousand, four hundred and forty four packs.'"

"That's a mouthful of bad luck! (See author's notes)" Shadow exclaimed.

"It's a bad omen... An apprentice who was once our's to command, though?" Green asked.

_Let us make haste, Heroes. _Demon urged. _Oh, one more thing, you are the only ones capable of hearing me. _

"Let's go, then." Shadow nodded.

"Hm." The others nodded in reply.

* * *

They made haste to Castle Town, finding that most people were indoors. The soldier left them and returned to the castle.

_Rain, tend to the Shadow Hylian's injuries now. If my hunch is correct, we'll need ever ounce of strength we have soon. _Rain nodded in reply to the horse, before darting around Shadow's injured leg, sprinkling some of the silverish dust onto his wound. Once she finished, Shadow dismounted, finding that his leg had completely healed.

"Thanks, Rain. I owe you one." Shadow nodded.

"No, Shadow. I owed you for something you did for me awhile back. You owe me nothing." Rain shook her head. "Oh, I guess you can't remember." Shadow shook his head in response.

"Guys! The castle!" Red pointed to the castle in alarm. Smoke was rising from it. They darted through town, arriving quickly. Part of the castle was on fire, or at least, the roof was. All but Demon darted in the main entrance, quickly finding their way to a destroyed throne room. Shadow was the first to spot the black cloaked figure.

"hehehe... I was wondering when you'd arrive." The figure turned to face them, the hood of the cloak obstructing their face. In the figure's left hand was a longsword with a black, glowing blade. Shadow unsheathed his sword, pointing it at the figure.

"You're the one who did this. You had no reason to what-so-ever. I challenge you, so duel me now." Shadow challenged. Green swore that there was one word missing from that last phrase, but he couldn't place it until remembering his duel with Vio in the Fire Temple.

_"So you really, have chosen to side with them. There is no way I can let Gufuu have the power of the Four Sword. I shall defeat you myself. Duel me now, Vio!" _

Vio? No, Vio wouldn't turn sides, and if he had to trick their enemy, whoever it was at this point, then he wouldn't have done this. Green had no more time to think when Shadow and the cloaked figure charged at each other, exchanging blows back and forth. Both swords became extensions of the wielder's arm, and blurs of black and silver. Surprisingly, the cloaked figure's hood stayed up. Both combatants crossed paths, which Shadow later recognised as a deadly mistake. His opponent raised his sword, and started to bring it into a downwards slash...

* * *

Author's notes: Okay, I have a promise now; This will be updated sooner than last time.

Oh! My explanation to Shadow's 'That's a mouth full of bad luck' comment! Here it goes...

There are two Japanese words for four,

Yon

and

Shi

Shi (if I remember correctly) is the first syllable of death, making it, according to Japanese superstition, an unlucky number. Four hundred forty-four thousand, four hundred forty-four is 444,444. (Out of breath) That was a mouthful!


	7. Chapter 7

Author's notes: There are two characters introduced in this chapter. They'll be weaving in and out. One is fully introduced, while the other is only hinted. Both names are told. Pay attention when they show up, because they have a big (even if it doesn't seem like it) part in the turn of events.

Alrighty, ya know, I think it's time for a summary change. Anyone else?

New Summary: While Shadow has defeated their main threat, what he's left behind is going to tear the Five Links further apart from the Fourth, and take Shadow to the edge, trying to figure out how to reverse it.

**Chaos Over the Sword**

Shadow, with only a split second to go, found an opening in his opponent's attack. He rolled forwards, and stabbed his sword through the side of the hood of the cloak, barely missing the figure's face. His opponent, surprised, didn't react in time, and Shadow slashed in a direction away from his face, pulling the cloak off. Shadow froze, dropping his sword in surprise. His opponent fell to his hands and knees.

"You... you..." Shadow stuttered for the right word.

"TRAITOR!" Blue finished for him. Green shook his head. It couldn't, _couldn't, _in all of Hyrule be who was in front of him. A grin grew on the formerly cloaked teenager's face.

"Traitor? Hardly... I've become more progressive." Shadow growled. The same quote, once again.

"Vio..." Shadow muttered in distaste. Vio's grin widened as he got to his feet. His clothing was different; He no longer wore the purple tunic and hat, but rather a long-sleeved purple shirt with loose-fitting black pants. His eyes, once blue sapphires, were either dull blue stones, or red rubies, switching between the two colours constantly.

"You called?" Vio asked with a touch of sarcasim.

"If you've gone to the other side," Shadow rolled, grabbing his sword and holding it against Vio's neck. "Then who are you working for?"

"Who? Who were you working for, ten-rupee slave?" Vio replied.

"Gufuu."

"Who else?"

"...Ganon."

"Exactly." Vio turned away, and started walking towards the other three Links. Red backed up a bit, while Blue and Green stood their ground.

"Rain." Shadow looked around for the fairy, only to find that she had left in the midst of the duel. "Damn it."

"Even if it did rain, we wouldn't be affected, idiot." Vio glanced back. The temprature in the room suddenly rose, before the roof caved in above them, engulfed in flames. Shadow rolled towards the other Links just before it came down ontop of the five of them.

"Now we would be." Shadow replied, trying to keep himself from being crushed or burned. The later wasn't hard, as he had lived in the Fire Temple for awhile.

"SHADOW!" Shadow could've sworn he had heard that voice before... It was a girl's, in her early teens, easily heard over the crackling of the roofing that was on fire still. The heat was nearly unbareable under the roofing. Shadow was on his back, with none of the other Links in sight.

"Anna, leave it." Rang a second voice. Everyone but Vio reconginsed it. It was the voice of the soldier who talked to them earlier.

"I can't... Shadow's trapped with the other Links!"

"Is it worth it?"

"I think we're in the middle of a fued." Green commented quietly.

"He'd do the same for me." The girl replied to the soldier's.

"Would he? Last time he saw you he had no clue who you were!"

"Your point? I won't leave him here."

"What is it with you Shadow Hylians?!"

"What is it with you Hylians?" Muttered the girl in responce.

"You shut up already." Footsteps stomped away, before the crackling of the fire quietened before it no longer existed, and more footsteps, softer than the stomping, rang out in the silence, before fading away. "I just can't get through to you, can I, Naitoko?"

Shadow exhaled sharply as the temprature started going down noticably. A sharp pain suddenly went through his right leg, and he cried out.

"Shadow! You okay?" Red yelled out. Shadow glanced down at his leg, seeing a large piece of wood stuck into it, with Vio crouched in an area where the roofing wasn't as low. Shadow tried to move away from Vio, but couldn't go anywhere at the moment.

"I'd be better if Ganon's apprentice who used to work for us wasn't looking straight at me." Shadow replied, then it hit him, that wolfo, Kazuya, that the soldier had talked about. "The apprentice..."

"That was once..." Red continued

"Ours to command is..." Blue added

"Vio." Green finished bluntly. Vio clapped slowly a few times.

"It took you long enough." He commented.

"Master!" Rang a gruff, deep male voice.

"That's my ride. Have fun." Vio shifted some of the roofing above his head, causing other parts to collapse, and climbed out. "Kazuya, we're leaving!"

"Yes, Master."

The sound of paws padding on the stone ground rang, before silence remained. Suddenly, as if out of nowhere, a Hylian soldier in blood-covered, dented armor dropped down from where Vio had left.

"Shadow Link." Said the soldier.

"I told you; Call me Shadow."

"Sorry, Shadow. Where are the others?"

"Up here!" Red called out. He was standing with Green and Blue on either side of him at Vio's little exit.

"Get him out!" Green called down. The soldier nodded, crouching down next to where the roofing was lower.

"Shadow, give me your hand." The soldier extended a hand towards him. Shadow gripped it, and was pulled out to where the soldier was. He was helped to his feet, or foot, as he wasn't going to put weight on his right leg. Red extended a hand, and Shadow grabbed it. Blue and Green grabbed a hold of Shadow's hadn, and the three of them pulled Shadow out. The soldier climbed out and sat on the edge of the roofing, which Shadow noticed, was not scorching hot like it should be after being on fire, but rather the temprature it was after it rained, minus the water. The soldier removed his helmet, revealing that it was the soldier from earlier, and the arguement (which, Shadow was still wondering about).

"_Who are you_? You seem to weave in and out of our lives." Shadow asked. The soldier shook his head.

"No one important. My name's Sleinr. I grew up in another kingdom, but came to Hyrule to find my missing brother." Answered the soldier.

"Did you find him?" Red asked.

"I did. He doesn't remember me though." Sleinr shook his head. "Ah, it doesn't matter. I'm just keeping his mission going, keeping our cousins, or cousin now, I guess, alive."

"What do you mean by that?" Shadow asked

"Nothing important. Rune," Sleinr stood up. "The Princess is safe." He said before leaving.

"That was confusing..." Green muttered.

"Tell me about it." Shadow nodded. "I feel like I know him from somewhere... but I can't remember where..."

"Did he call you 'Rune'?" Blue asked Shadow.

"Yes, he did."

"Why?"

"You tell me."


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Notes: Got a riddle for you! The answer is hidden in this chapter.

Who is Shadow?

Who is Rune?

Don't answer in a comment. Want it confirmed? PM me. If you have it right, well, you'll understand this a heck of a lot more.

Hint: Look for something that doesn't fit.

**Happy Hunting! **

**Chaos Over the Sword**

Green, Blue and Red all helped **S**hadow to his feet and off the fallen, burnt-out roofing back onto the stone floor, just as Demon and Rain burst in, followed by Zelda and three guards. Zelda darted upto the Links, and wrapped her arms around them, making it hard for Shadow to keep his balance.

"Thank the Goddesses you're okay." She w**h**ispered. Her hair was a mess, with mud and dirt all through it. She was badly bruised, and her dress was ruined. Dirt smuged her face, but she didn't appear to care. She stepped back, and, as far as the Links could guess, did a head-count mentally.

"Where's Vio?" She asked. Shadow looked down, and said **a** few inaudible words, before repeating them a bit louder.

"Vio... is the apprentice who was once our's."

Zelda gasped, and the guar**d**s widened there eyes. Demon lowered his head, and Rain's wings drooped.

_I am sorry to hear, that. _Dem**o**n's eyes dimmed. Zelda nodded.

"I never though Vio would..." She bit her lip.

"He's been contaminated with Shadow Magic. He is a**w**are of what he is doing, but his way of thinking has changed." Shadow told her. Rain perked up.

"You mean... A spell of m**i**sleading?" She asked

"Ya, why?"

"I know a counter to it, but I haven't the proper ingredients for it... my Master does, though." Rain paused, before adding. "Child of Twilight, and of Night. Heir to a throne in a distant kingdom." Zelda blinked, as if remembering seeing or hearing about that.

"Yoruko? **S**leinr's cousin?" She asked the fairy.

"That's her. AKA Naitoko." Answered **R**ain.

"Naito..." Shadow bit his lip. "First of the Shadow Kids... twin to Adrian Twilight? 'Ganon's Rebel'?"

"Yo**u** know her?"

"I remember the **n**ame and title, but nothing more." Shadow replied. Rain sighed.

"I was hoping you r**e**membered more." Muttered the fairy.

_Rain, we cannot force him to remember more than his mind can right now. _Spoke Demon.

"I know..." Rain's wings drooped again.

"Sorry." Shadow looked away.

_Do not apologize, Rune. Rain lacks patience._

"Thanks, Demon." Shadow nodded to the stallion.

_Rain, heal his leg. _Demon looked to the fairy, who nodded, and started circling Shadow. The wood in his leg disappeared, and the wounds healed over. Shadow nodded his gratitude to her, before noticing that Rain's skin stopped glowing, and she started falling to the ground. Shadow darted forwards and caught the fairy, raising her to eye level.

"Rain, Rain, can you hear me?" Shadow asked, getting a weak nod in reply. Rain looked just like a miniature human now, her skin the same colour as Shadow's. Her eyes were a metallic silver. The only difference between her and a Hylian was her wings, which drooped. She looked weak, sick, even. That was rare for a fairy, for certain. Zelda took Rain from Shadow's hands, and cupped the black-coloured fairy in her own.

"I will restore her strength, but it'll take a while." She told Shadow, who nodded.

_Princess, _Demon lowered his head. _My master says that her home has been overthrown by the Shadow Hylian forces already, and she says that if Hyrule has any hope, it rests on those without darkness in them. _

"That may be so, but I trust the four remaining Links with my life, Demon." Zelda replied to the horse.

"You can hear him, too?" Green asked.

"It was the Royal Family who discovered mental communication like that Demon uses, so, yes." Zelda nodded.

_Princess, you must leave Hyrule quickly. _

"But where would I go, Demon? I cannot just leave my people now."

_I honor your courage. _

"Thank you." Zelda bowed. Shadow smacked his forehead suddenly.

"I remember who Naito is! Anna Runie Twilight from one of Hyrule's bordering Kingdoms. A Shadow Hylian herself, she was one of the group I used to hang out with."

Demon whinnied in excitement. Zelda smiled, and Rain perked up as much as she could.

"Good... you... remember her..." Rain said weakly.

"She once worked for Ganondorf because of a mistake her cousin made when he was the Hero..." Shadow bit his lip. "Which was when she became a Shadow Hylian, no, Shadow Hylia... Her twin was killed while the three of them attempted to steal the Triforce of Power from Ganon..."

"Ganondorf?" Blue asked.

"Ganon's human form." Answered Shadow. "Corrupt by the Triforce of Power, in anger he transformed into Ganon." Zelda nodded in satisfaction.

"Shadow, if you remember all that, do you remember the three who would wield the Triforce if the current wielders died?" Zelda asked.

"Only two, Naito and someone by the name of Alec."

"Alec what?"

"Alec Twilight, Naito's cousin."

"Middle name?"

"**R**-" Shadow choked on the word. It dawned on him. "It... can't... be... I... can't... be..." He collasped to his knees, and tears rolled down his face. Green, Blue and Red were amazed to see Shadow _crying._ "How..." He slammed his first into the ground. "HOW?!"

Zelda sat Rain on Demon's head, between his ears and kneeled beside Shadow, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Yo**u** are more than you have become, Shadow. You have friends, waiting for you. Think about it, Yoruko, Hanako, Masaru, what would they think if you gave up because of the things in the past. Didn't Yoruko once tell you, 'Past deeds will be forgotten; We cannot live without our others. If mistakes remain and night is day, the children won't come out to play'?"

Shadow nodded, crossing his arms. "When light turns to **n**ight..." he muttered, then looked up. "Sleinr!" He exclaimed, getting to his feet. Zelda followed soon after.

"He left town earlier to find Yoruko, Shadow." She told him.

"Ish. Ish." Shadow cursed, twice. "Ganon's Rebel..." Shadow smiled. "That long ago..." He shook his head. "M**e**mories now." His left hand shot to his neck, then he slowly lowered **i**t.

"What'**s** wrong, **S**hadow?" Red asked, seeing a disappointed look on Shadow's face.

"The pendant... I can't remember what happened to it."

"What pendant? You've never had one." Green raised an eyebrow.

_Something passed down in Shadow's fami**l**y since it began. _Demon answered for Green. _He lost it before he met you guys. _

"Ooooohhhh!" Gre**e**n nodded. "So a family heirloom type thing..."

"_**I**_ guess you could say that." Shadow walked over to a still-intact window and leaned on the windowsill. "My family was different them most. If Vio was here he'd explain this to you, but my family had something called the Twilight Curse. It got it's **n**ame from us, as ou**r** family name was Twilight, and we were the only family with it. We wouldn**'**t age pa**s**t a certain point, and with each generation that age got younger, and younger, and younger. I'm a year older than my brother, but you can't tell, **b**ecause as I stopped aging at fifteen, he stopped aging at seventeen, my cousins at thirteen." He looked up. "The longest time we were just a no**r**mal family, happy, got along... well... except the fact that my father and uncle b**o**th committed suicide after Yoru and her twin Adrian were born, but that was forgotten soon after. My family doesn't fear dea**t**h, for we outlive it if we avoid it. But I messed that up after my sixteenth. I left home to come to **H**yrule, and that's where it all went wrong... I made the stupidest mistake in the book for Din's sak**e**!"

"What was it?" **R**ed asked, sitting cross-legged while listening to Shadow's story."

"I..." Shadow choked on the words. "I..." He turned away.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chaos Over the Sword**

"I sold my cousins to Ganon." Shadow said bluntly as he turned away. Even Demon seemed surprised, and glared at the Shadow Hylian. "Not for rupees, or anything like that. It wasn't even on purpose..." He bit his lip. "I was to kill Ganon in a duel once and for all a long time ago, but just before I went to kill him he said that if I joined him he'd spare mine and my cousins lives. If I didn't, then he'd get up and kill me then, and afterwards kill Yoruko and Adrian... I gave in, fell for it. But, I soon found that the only way to protect them was for them to come with me and well... that's how I ended up in this crazy story." He sat on the windowsill sideways and looked out the window.

"How could you fall for that?!" Blue exclaimed as if it was the easiest thing to realise as a trick.

"I'm still questioning that now." Shadow replied. "We managed to get out for awhile, when we were captured by Shadow Hylians. That was the first time I lost my memory..." He bit his lip.

"So, Shadow... exactly how old are you?" Green crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Seven thousand, four hundred..." Shadow paused. "Fifteen." Demon lowered his head.

_There are three with the initials of A.R.T, Rune. _The horse started. _Do you accept your place as the first? _Shadow nodded.

"Alec Rune Twilight. Never thought the name would return to me." Shadow commented in reply. Demon seemed to nod. Shadow got to his feet again. "I'm going to find Yoruko, if she knows how to cure Vio. I don't care what it takes. I'll leave Hyrule if needed. We need Vio back on our side."

"We're going too." Green stepped forwards.

"We can't let you go off and save Hyrule on your own." Blue had a slightly cocky look on his face.

"We'll save Vio, together." Red nodded.

_Do not forget me. I am unsure of when I last saw my Master. But I cannot stand still while the Heroes are out to find her to rescue the fourth! _Demon declared.

"I will stay here and heal Rain." Zelda spoke. "My people need me, otherwise I would gladly come too." Zelda took Rain from where she was atop Demon's head. "Be safe, and make haste as you go, Heroes. Vio may be deeper into the shadows then we realise." She warned.

"Of course." Shadow nodded, before turning to the other Links. "Let's go. We can't waste any more time." The others nodded in reply.

With that, they turned, leaving the castle and the town, following Shadow's lead.

* * *

"Shadow, where do you think your cousin would hide?" Blue asked as the group followed Shadow across Hyrule Field.

"Somewhere Sleinr could find her." Answered Shadow, walking with Demon at his side.

_There's Death Mountain, but she's not a fan of heat. _Demon started.

"Oi... guys!" Red exclaimed, pointing to groups of rocks. Shadow rolled his eyes, walking over, before realising that where the rocks were placed were no accident.

_She's gone home. _Commented Demon, walking up beside Shadow. The rocks were placed so they were Ancient Hylian runes, which translated into a simple sentence; I am far from here, at home.

"...Demon, how long would it take to get out of Hyrule?" Shadow asked.

_A day, maybe less if we hurried._ Replied the stallion.

"Do we have that kind of time?" Shadow muttered.

"We'll make it!" Red assured him.

"Ya'll think so?" Shadow crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Mhm!" Red replied with a nod.

"Then let's go." Shadow turned towards Lake Hylia, rising above the ground near the horizon. "Let's get to the other side of Lake Hylia before nightfall, and lose the stachilds while they sleep."

He took off at a jog, the other Links following suit behind him. Demon trotted beside them, overflowing with eagerness.

* * *

They stopped at Lake Hylia for a break. Shadow sat on a rock, staring out onto the lake.

"Yoruko... why have you not been keeping in touch with Sleinr?" He muttered. "Iasaduk, Yoruko..." He bit his lip.

"You okay?" Rang a voice from a hill behind Shadow. The Links and Demon turned to see Sleinr in brown travel clothing standing there, a sword sheathed at his right side. "You seemed... out of it."

"Fine, Sleinr." Shadow replied, getting to his feet. "Why are you here?"

"Same reason you are." Sleinr answered. "Only difference is, I know where Yoru is." The Links, and Demon, perked up.

"Do you?!" Shadow exclaimed.

"Hm." Sleinr nodded. "There's a forest that was demolished by the leaders, but because the Twilights owned part of it, they couldn't remove it without Yoru's permission, and she denied them it. Do you know who Yoru is?"

"The princess." Answered Shadow. "But no one else seems to know."

"No. They don't." Sleinr agreed. "But they do know that the heir is of Twilight blood, so they daren't do anything to tick us off."

"That's good." Shadow crossed his arms.

"But they can't tell a Twilight from a Shadow Hylian. You, being both, may end up in Kersil by morning."

Kersil, the capital of a kingdom by the name of Velicatha, living quietly beside Hyrule for generations. That was where the kingdom's castle lied. Shadow shuddered.

"They're taking Shadow Hylians? What for?" Green asked.

"Shadow, answer that question." Sleinr turned to Shadow.

"I don-" Shadow paused, remembering something about Yoruko's bloodline. "She's a pure-blooded Hylia turned Shadow Hylia, and the Shadow Hylians have a bounty on her head."

"Exactly. And because Yoru's a Twilight, she's under the kingdom's protection."

"But... what about Shadow, if he's Yoru's cousin?" Blue asked.

"By the time we told her, he'd be in Kersil. By the time we got there to get him out, Vio would've destroyed half of Hyrule." Sleinr shot a glare at Blue that seemed to say 'figure it out for yourself.'

"Oh." Blue shut up.

"Sleinr, would you take us to Yoru?" Shadow asked him. Sleinr hesitated, but nodded.

"Yes, Rune. I will." He promised.

They left Lake Hylia at dusk, heading towards a small patch of forest in the distance.

* * *

They arrived while the crescent moon was high in the sky, accompanied by the shining stars, and the faintest sound of music as they wandered through the woods. The trees cast eerie shadows on the ground, and Demon seemed to disappear in the darkness. They stopped at the edge of a clearing.

"Stop. You waltz in and you'll be attacked faster than you can say Triforce." Sleinr told them. "And I don't suggest trying it." He shot a glare at the Links. "I'll be back." He then walked through some trees and vanished.

Shadow sat down on a large tree stump. A large wooden stage was in front of them, a thirteen year old girl with raven hair in black pants and a navy blue shirt was sitting on the edge.

"Okotian." Someone spoke. The girl nodded, getting to her feet. She looked up at the star-lit sky as an acoustic guitar started playing. Her voice amplified by magic, she started singing slowly...

"Kacorda ee alasina

Alasina erna oor...

korda ter yurana"

The Links watched, not understanding the words as the tempo sped up. Shadow understood every last syllable, mouthing the words along. It didn't take him long before he recognised the song.

"Alasina rena ban ter yevern

haverererern ya korda yuranar orana

ganan alasina

havser alasina erna" the song continued for awhile longer, Shadow seeming content with the moment, without worry.

The song ended, and the girl jumped down from the stage and darted over to Shadow, who was now on his feet. She hugged him, gripping onto his sleeves, head on his shoulder.

"Shadow... I never thought... you'd return..." She spoke, her crimson eyes watering.

"It's okay, I'm back." Shadow wrapped his arms around her. "Yoruko."

* * *

Author's notes: This chapter felt a bit rushed... but, I finished it. Next one will be better.


End file.
